1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for the orienting of bottles or similar containers, which is used in particular in handling machines such as labeling or decorating machines.
2. Description of Related Art
In these machines, the bottles move on a conveyor or reed line, in principle, to the entrance of a rotary indexing cross or spider where each bottle selected by the spider is placed on a saddle or cup of special trajectory which feeds the bottle carried by it to the treatment station or carousel.
It is clear that if no special measure is taken, the label or decoration is affixed to the peripheral surface of the bottle in a region which varies depending on the position assumed by the bottle around its axis at the time that it is placed on its support, saddle or cup.
In the case of labels which must be affixed at given places on the periphery of the bottle or if it is necessary to decorate it or place rosettes of wax or imitation wax of synthetic material on it, it is necessary to provide means for orienting the bottles and such means then comprise orientation marks which may consist of an excess thickness on the body of the bottles, in general located between 35 and 40 mm from the bottom of the bottles on the body of the bottles and not protruding, in which case they have a hollow or a double hollow, or under the bottom of the bottles, whether "debouching" or "not debouching".
In general, the orientation is brought about either in the entrance cross of the machines or on the treatment carousels.
However, in the entrance crosses of machines, only reference marks which are on the body of the bottles are of reliable use.
In the case of marks which are under the bottles, the bottles are oriented on the saddles of the machines by an automatic orientation system on each saddle, which results in complicated mechanisms and entails the risk, particularly in the case of labeling, of the saddles being wetted, hence definite drawbacks upon the breaking, for instance, of a full bottle (the liquid passing, at that time, into the mechanism of the saddles and causing serious interruptions in operation).
These complicated mechanisms are intended, in fact, to drive the bottles in rotation around their axis in order to bring their orientation mark into engagement with an associated element on the part in which the orientation is to be brought about.
In order to avoid these mechanical means for the driving in rotation of the bottles, there has already been proposed, in particular in Federal Republic of Germany 2916822 (Kronseder) or French application 2454969 (Otto Sick), an orientation device which is adapted to bring at least one point of a generatrix of the side surface of the bottle to rub by contact with at least one wall during the relative displacement of said bottle and said wall.
However, in these known devices, during their entire rotation around their axis, the bottles remain placed vertically on the rotary table of the indexing cross, being clamped between the wall of the compartments of said cross and the rubbing wall, which results in extensive wear of the latter and difficult adjustment of the position and shape of said wall.